Slack MCP Server Setup Guide (2026)

The Slack MCP server lets your AI assistant read and write to Slack directly — no copy-pasting between windows, no context switching. Ask Claude to summarize what happened in a channel while you were away, draft a message, or find who said what and when.

What You Can Do

"Summarize #engineering from the last 24 hours"

"Post a standup update to #general"

"Find the thread where we discussed the API rate limits"

"List all unread messages in my DMs"

"Send a message to @alice saying the PR is ready"

Prerequisites

Node.js 18+ installed

A Slack workspace where you have permission to create apps

Claude Desktop, Cursor, or another MCP-compatible client

Step 1: Create a Slack App

The Slack MCP server authenticates via a Slack Bot Token. You'll need to create a Slack app to get one.

1. Go to api.slack.com/apps and click Create New App
2. Choose From scratch
3. Name your app (e.g., "MCP Assistant") and select your workspace
4. Click Create App

Step 2: Configure Bot Permissions

1. In your app settings, go to OAuth & Permissions in the left sidebar
2. Scroll to Scopes → Bot Token Scopes
3. Add these scopes:

channels:history — Read messages in public channels

channels:read — View list of channels

chat:write — Send messages as the bot

im:history — Read DM history

im:read — View DMs

search:read — Search messages

users:read — Look up user info

4. Scroll up and click Install to Workspace
5. Authorize the permissions
6. Copy the Bot User OAuth Token (starts with xoxb-)

Step 3: Install the Slack MCP Server

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-slack

Or use npx without installing globally (recommended):

npx @modelcontextprotocol/server-slack

Step 4: Configure Claude Desktop

Open your Claude Desktop config file:

Mac

code ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows

code %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Add the Slack MCP server:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "slack": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-slack"],
      "env": {
        "SLACK_BOT_TOKEN": "xoxb-your-token-here",
        "SLACK_TEAM_ID": "T1234567890"
      }
    }
  }
}

Finding your Team ID: Go to your Slack workspace in a browser. The URL looks like app.slack.com/client/T1234567890/... — that T... value is your Team ID.

Restart Claude Desktop completely after saving.

Step 5: Configure Cursor IDE

In Cursor, go to Settings → Features → MCP Servers and add:

{
  "slack": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-slack"],
    "env": {
      "SLACK_BOT_TOKEN": "xoxb-your-token-here",
      "SLACK_TEAM_ID": "T1234567890"
    }
  }
}

Verifying the Connection

Once configured, test it:

1. Open a new Claude or Cursor conversation
2. Ask: "List the public channels in my Slack workspace"
3. You should see a list of your channels returned

If it doesn't work, see the troubleshooting section below.

Practical Use Cases

Daily Standup Automation

Ask Claude: "Read #engineering from the last 8 hours and write a standup summary I can post"

Claude reads the channel history, identifies key updates, and drafts a summary you can post directly.

Incident Response

During an outage: "Search Slack for any messages about 'database timeout' in the last hour and summarize what the team knows"

Gets you up to speed instantly without scrolling through dozens of threads.

Message Drafting

"Draft a message to #product-team about the API launch being delayed two days, keep it brief and professional"

Useful for crafting sensitive messages where tone matters.

Cross-Channel Research

"What was the decision about the new authentication system? Search across all channels."

Finds information across your entire workspace history.

Troubleshooting

"Not authorized" error
Your bot token doesn't have the required scopes. Go back to OAuth & Permissions, add the missing scopes, and reinstall the app to your workspace (this regenerates the token).

Bot can't see certain channels
The bot must be invited to private channels. In Slack, open the private channel and type /invite @YourBotName.

"Channel not found"
You may be referencing a channel by display name (e.g., #general) — the API uses channel IDs internally. Ask Claude to "list all channels" first to see the available names and IDs.

Claude doesn't respond to Slack requests
Make sure you fully restarted Claude Desktop (quit from the menu bar, not just close the window) after updating the config file.

Security Considerations

Your bot token grants the permissions you configured — keep it in your MCP config only, never commit it to a repo

If you're working with a shared workspace, be aware that the bot can see channel history based on where it's been invited

For workspaces with sensitive data, scope down permissions to only what you need — remove search:read if you don't need cross-workspace search

What's Available in the Slack MCP Server

| Tool | What It Does |
|------|-------------|
| list_channels | Get all channels the bot can see |
| get_channel_history | Read recent messages from a channel |
| post_message | Send a message to a channel |
| get_thread_replies | Read a full thread |
| search_messages | Search across all visible channels |
| list_users | Get workspace member list |
| get_user_info | Look up a specific user |

Next Steps

Combine with the GitHub MCP server to connect code discussions to actual PRs

Pair with Notion MCP to pull meeting notes into Slack messages

See best MCP servers 2026 for more integrations that work alongside Slack